Self-Storage Demand Holds Firm Even As REIT Stocks In Sector Decline
The self-storage industry continues to outperform other asset classes, particularly those sectors facing macroeconomic headwinds or investor slowdown.
For years, the industry has been on fire, largely immune to the economy's ups and downs, since people will always need to store items, according to a report by Heitman, a global real estate investment firm.
However, in recent months, large REITs, including Public Storage, Extra Space Storage and CubeSmart, have seen stocks plummet as much as 16% year-to-date, CNBC reports.
While self-storage may be incubated from macroeconomic headwinds, these REITS still have been constrained in developing new projects by higher interest rates and construction costs, like other CRE sectors.
The sector's construction stood at 31.5M SF in the third quarter of 2025, down 7.8% from the same period in 2024, according to Yardi Matrix.
Its asset values are down 12% from their peak levels in the first half of 2025, and investment stood at $2.8B, less than 1% of the total transaction volume in 2023, according to Cushman & Wakefield.
However, investors are taking note of the demographic shifts leading to growing life events that create demand for the sector.
Blue Vista Capital Management created a $600M national self-storage platform in an effort to build up its self-storage portfolio earlier this week. The fund will target value-add properties and development opportunities.
At the beginning of the month, National Storage Affiliates Trust entered into a joint venture with Investment Real Estate Management targeting value-add self-storage investments in growth markets over the next 24 months.
